MTA track worker James Knell was moving bulky container when he fell to his death: internal report

MTA workers at scene where supervisor Jimmy Knell (below) died after falling on tracks in April. (Egan-Chin/News)

James Knell was moving a bulky container with at least 90 pounds of spikes when he fell to the third rail, an internal NYC Transit report reveals.

The clunky design of the container, and the formidable weight of the load, are among a series of 11 safety concerns raised in the preliminary report on the track workers' tragic death on April 26.

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"These are all issues that could very well be presented to a jury as to liability or fault for the wrongful death" of Knell, said lawyer Sanford Rubenstein, who is representing Knell's widow, Jackie.

The Office of System Safety Report doesn't place blame or fault. It does identify actions the agency should take to make work sites safe - including providing workers with spike containers with handles so they can be moved more easily and safely and limiting the weight to 51 pounds.

The spike buckets currently can hold as many as 115 spikes and weigh 120 pounds, according to the report, which says: "The shape and size of the spike bucket ... makes it difficult to be picked up and carried by two people working together."

On the day Knell fell, work had essentially been completed for the day on a track replacement project and power restored to the third rail so a test train could come through. Protective boards were not scheduled to be placed back over the third rail until the following weekend. Track workers say that is a common time-saving practice when work in an area is to resume at a later date.

The report says NYC Transit should test a temporary protective covering for use in such instances.

Other findings include:

- Half of the trackside emergency phones in the area weren't working.

- There were not signs alerting workers that power was restored to stretches of track. There were warning lamps, but some may have shorted out because of rain.

- It had rained on and off in the hours before the accident, and there was a light mist when Knell fell.